| Location: | About a mile north of Ankor Wat |
| King: | Jayavarman VII |
| Date: | 12th-13th century |
| Religion: | Buddhist |
Angkor Thom - The temple city
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"Angkor" comes from "nagara", which means
"town" or "city", "thom" is the
Khmer word for "big" or "large". The area of
about 10 square kms is surrounded by a huge wall some 8 metres in
height and a moat a 100 metres wide, now largely dry. In the wall
are a number of large gates, the largest being in the center of
the north and south walls. Two are set in the eastern wall.
At it's peak Ankor Thom may have had a population of a million
people, more than any other city in the world at that time.
Inside the walls a number of kings had their residences built. As
houses for mortal people were all built in wood nothing remains
of those today.
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The top picture shows the road through the south gate which leads up to the Bayon temple in the exact middle of the city of Angkor Thom. At the sides of the causeway leading up to the gate you will find a row of 54 stone figures on each side, gods on the left and demons on the right. A number of heads have gone missing and some originals are being replaced by copies to prevent further theft. The gates themselves are 20 metres in height and rest at the sides of ornately carved elephant trunks. They are crowned by four impressive carved faces of the Hindu god Loki.
